Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE:LADR) Short Interest Update

Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE:LADR) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 862,800 shares, a decrease of 17.8% from the February 13th total of 1,050,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 581,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.5 days. Approximately 0.8% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ladder Capital

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Ladder Capital by 816.1% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,637 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 3,240 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC grew its stake in Ladder Capital by 13,513.5% during the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 7,079 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 7,027 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. acquired a new stake in Ladder Capital during the fourth quarter worth approximately $84,000. Quarry LP grew its stake in Ladder Capital by 1,832.9% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 8,118 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 7,698 shares during the period. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new stake in Ladder Capital during the fourth quarter worth approximately $112,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.25% of the company’s stock.

Ladder Capital Price Performance

Shares of LADR stock traded down $0.01 on Wednesday, hitting $11.65. 500,206 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 586,490. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a current ratio of 38.96 and a quick ratio of 38.96. Ladder Capital has a 12 month low of $10.21 and a 12 month high of $12.48. The stock has a market cap of $1.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.54 and a beta of 1.91. The company has a 50 day moving average of $11.42 and a 200 day moving average of $11.53.

Ladder Capital (NYSE:LADR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.29 by ($0.04). Ladder Capital had a net margin of 21.36% and a return on equity of 8.77%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ladder Capital will post 1.03 EPS for the current year.

Ladder Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.90%. Ladder Capital’s payout ratio is 106.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on LADR. B. Riley upgraded Ladder Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com downgraded Ladder Capital from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Ladder Capital from $13.00 to $12.75 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $13.29.

About Ladder Capital

Ladder Capital Corp operates as an internally-managed real estate investment trust in the United States. It operates through three segments: Loans, Securities, and Real Estate. The Loans segment originates conduit first mortgage loans that are secured by cash-flowing commercial real estate; and originates and invests in balance sheet first mortgage loans secured by commercial real estate properties that are undergoing transition, including lease-up, sell-out, and renovation or repositioning.